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The Masked Marauders - The Masked Marauders (1969)

Track listing:
  1. I Can't Get No Nookie
  2. Duke Of Earl
  3. Cow Pie
  4. I Am The Japanese Sandman (Rang Tang Ding Dong)
  5. The Book Of Love
  6. Later
  7. More Or Less Hudson's Bay Again
  8. Season Of The Witch
  9. Saturday Night At The Cow Palace

Notes


by Jim Powers
"In a world of sham, the Masked Marauders are truly the genuine article." Following the wake of the "supergroup hype" of the late '60s (Blind Faith, Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Led Zeppelin), a joke review ran in Rolling Stone about an album that didn't exist by a group called the Masked Marauders, supposedly consisting of John Lennon, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, and Bob Dylan, produced by Al Kooper. Some months later, an album by the Masked Marauders appeared, causing a good deal of controversy. It wasn't recorded by the above named superstars, the last song on the album being a disclaimer stating that fact. The tongue-in-cheek album liner notes also slyly hinted that it was bogus: "Leading experts now estimate that the music business is currently 90% hype and 10% bullsh*t. The Masked Marauders, bless their hearts, have gone far beyond that. Their music needs no hype. It transcends the very essence of the bullsh*t for which the public pays millions each year." For the most part the record and concept of the Masked Marauders faded into oblivion. Tracks from the album have surfaced on bootlegs, disguised as Beatles, Stones, or Dylan "outtakes."

The album based on the joke review, featuring a good Jagger imitation ("Can't Get No Nookie"), a few decent Dylan imitations ("Cow Pie", "Duke of Earl," "Season of the Witch") and attempted imitations of the others that would fool nobody. The Masked Marauders was an amusing concept — in execution there is no reason to get excited. The original fake review and the album's liner notes are funnier than the music.